Were the people in the
Bible any different to us today?
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Or ordinary
people like you and me?
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What can we find
out from their lives
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that will help us?
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Find out with
Pastor Geoff Yuolden
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and Rosemary Malkiewycz,
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here on "People Just Like Us."
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It's good to have you with us.
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Today we will discuss
another person in the Bible
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and see what important lessons
we can learn from his life.
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So you have an intriguing
title for this program, Geoff.
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Who is the man
that was born twice?
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Well, it is an intriguing title.
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But there was a man
that was born twice,
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his name was Nicodemus.
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Actually the
Nicodemus in the Bible,
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now while the Bible
doesn't tell us this.
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Nevertheless, it's interesting
that there are many thinkers
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who feel that his original name
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or his full name was
Nicodemus Ben Guryon.
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And that he was
the brother-in-law
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of Josephus, the historian.
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All right.
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Now, as I said, we
can't be dogmatic about that
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because the
Bible doesn't say it.
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However, if that is true,
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then that would make him
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about the third
richest person in Israel.
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Now we know, he was rich. Yes.
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But the third richest,
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that really puts
him up, up the ladder.
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In fact, Nicodemus himself
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was very, very very
religious, highly religious.
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And the Bible says he
was a ruler of the Jews.
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And
unfortunately being a Pharisee,
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in our thinking today
Pharisees don't get good marks.
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No, they don't. They
have a bad reputation.
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Because we associate
Pharisees with hypocrites.
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Now I can assure you
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that Nicodemus
was not a hypocrite,
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he was a very sincere man.
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In fact, we know he
fasted twice in the week.
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He even tithed of his mint.
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Mint and cumin. Yes.
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When they would
go out to the garden,
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he kind of retains leaf.
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So it means that
how particular he was.
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And he knew much
of the Bible by heart.
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I mean that's...
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That would have
taken some effort
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to memorize much of the Bible.
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And he prayed a lot in private
and, of course, in public.
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And no doubt he had heard
about Jesus the Young Preacher
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from up north,
you know, Galilee.
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And that Young Preacher
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who had taken
the whole of Israel
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really by storm.
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And no doubt he had
gone to listen to Him.
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But one of the events
that would have stood out
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in his mind was the time
when Jesus went to the temple.
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And there they were trading
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and they were
carrying on selling things
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and Jesus upset the whole...
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Applecart.
Applecart, absolutely.
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Uprooted the tables
and money went everywhere.
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Because what was happening
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is that the
Sadducees would buy the animals
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at a fairly cheap rate.
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Then they would sell them
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at an exorbitant
price in the temple.
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And get richly.
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And they were making a
lot of money on the side.
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And so when Jesus came
along and upset the whole thing,
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they were very, very angry
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and they were
plotting to kill Him,
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and you can understand why.
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And, but Nicodemus,
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as we read the record
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obviously was very
impressed with Jesus.
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And he planned to
meet Him privately.
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He must have
seen something special
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in this Young Man and
when he listen to Him,
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his heart would
have burned in him
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with the truth
that was being spoken.
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Yeah, well, we like to think so.
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I mean, something
must have happened,
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because he was this man
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who was doctor
of the law probably.
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Once again, probably
the preeminent preacher
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or teacher in Israel.
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Oh, he was the
part of the Sanhedrin.
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Yes, a part of parliament,
and the 70 in parliament.
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And he came to Jesus by night.
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In John 3:2, it says,
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"This man came to Jesus by night
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and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know
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that You are a
teacher come from God,
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for no one can do these signs
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that You do
unless God is with him."
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You know, he was
battering Jesus up
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and trying to impress Him
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with what he was saying.
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But little that he know
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that in a very
short amount of time,
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his very belief structure
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was going to be
shaken to the very core.
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Because Jesus said to him
in verse 3, his reply was,
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"Jesus answered and said to him,
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'Most assuredly, I say to you,
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unless one is born again,
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he cannot see
the kingdom of God.'"
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And Jesus didn't use
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any extravagant
language here, did He?
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No.
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Because Nicodemus opens
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with a certain
thing that he's saying,
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you know, You've
obviously come from God.
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But Jesus got right to the
core of Nicodemus's questions.
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Jesus would have known
where Nicodemus's mind was
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and his heart and
his understanding level.
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So He goes right into a really
deep theological discussion
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which Nicodemus
wasn't expecting.
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Now what Nicodemus was,
putting a jam on we say,
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you know, lot of palaver
here in that verse, verse 2.
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But Jesus didn't reply
to any of that palaver.
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And we must
remember that Nicodemus
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did many, many,
many good things.
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He was a good man,
he lived a good life.
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You know, sometimes
we, because of the fact
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that he was a
Pharisee, we discount him.
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Enrich.
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But yes, and enrich, you know,
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that makes
sometimes people feel envious
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or whatever it is
and so he gets bad mark.
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He got his
riches of other people.
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Well, there's no
record of that is true
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but he may have.
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And his reply, of
course, Nicodemus's that is,
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his reply in
verse 4 when he said,
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"Nicodemus said to Him,
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'How can a man be
born when he is old?
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Can he enter a second time
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into his mother's
womb and be born?'"
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Now what I find very interesting
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about this,
Rosemary, is the fact
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that Nicodemus didn't ask why,
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he said, "How?"
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Because I believe that
he was deeply convicted,
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I mean he sensed
within him his own life,
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some of the
failures or the rituals
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that he was involved
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with all the
punctilious points about tithing
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and all the rest
that he was doing,
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which were not
wrong in themselves,
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but he recognized that
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these things
left him still cold.
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No, they were shallow. Yes.
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And, of course, as we
know we don't get to heaven
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by doing things like that.
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So he was aware
of sin in his life
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and so that's
why he's saying here,
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"How can a man be
born when he is old?"
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And then he says...
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Jesus answered him in verse 5,
when he says, "Jesus answered,
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'Most assuredly, I say to you,
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unless one is born
of water and the Spirit,
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he cannot enter
the kingdom of God.'"
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Now, there's no
doubt that Nicodemus's mind
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would have been taken
back to John the Baptist.
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Because this matter
of water and the spirit,
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that was the message
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that John the
Baptist was preaching.
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That's right.
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And he began to think
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and Jesus was pointing out here
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that unless you are born again,
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then you will never be
able to receive the Holy Spirit.
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And if you don't
have the Holy Spirit
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in your life then,
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obviously there's no such thing
as repentance and regeneration.
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We'll see, Nicodemus in verse 4
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is asking about
a physical birth.
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But in verse 5,
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Jesus is pointing
out it's not physical,
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it's a spiritual birth.
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Yes, yes.
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Look, I think
we could understand
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how hard the saying
was for poor old Nicodemus.
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I mean here he is
probably the preeminent teacher,
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I mean he was
associated with Gamaliel,
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the Pharisee who taught Phoebe.
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And no doubt they probably went
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to what we would
term university together
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or to the school
of the rabbis together
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and he knew him well.
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So you can imagine
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this Young
Preacher from the north,
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he comes down and says,
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now, listen Nicodemus,
you gotta be born again.
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And unless you're born
of water and the spirit,
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there's no future life.
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And He's telling me
and I'm the teacher.
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I'm the doctor of the law.
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He's uneducated, but
I'm the doctor of the law.
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So it would have been,
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I would think a
very, very hard thing
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for Nicodemus really to
accept what Jesus was saying.
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I mean his pride...
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Oh, yes.
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Would have
immediately affected him.
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But...
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It was really his pride
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that brought him
to Jesus at nighttime.
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He didn't want other
people to see him with Jesus.
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That's correct. It
could affect his career.
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Exactly.
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And Jesus was
emphasizing something
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that we all need to understand
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that it's not just a
matter of being born again,
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that's the foundation.
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But it's what
being born again means,
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it means not only
forgiveness for my sin
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but also regeneration.
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Because unless
my life is changed,
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I mean, if God can
forgive me for my sins,
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but there's something
more to it than just that,
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important, and
vital, and glorious,
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and wonderful as that he it.
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But there's another step,
too and that is regeneration.
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For example, Rosemary,
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you can imagine if
my heart is not changed,
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I might be forgiven.
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But if my heart is not
changed, what's gonna happen
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when we go to heaven and
we see the golden streets?
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I mean, I can just imagine
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if people's hearts
weren't regenerated and changed,
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the very first thing
that they would want to do.
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They start
digging up the streets.
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Is digging up
the golden streets,
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because that's
what we would do here.
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And so Nicodemus is being told
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when the Holy Spirit
comes into your heart,
00:11:01.19\00:11:03.12
not only do you
receive forgiveness
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but also regeneration.
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You do it,
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a complete
turnaround in your life.
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You have new
attitudes, you have new motives,
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you have a new direction to go.
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You don't wanna do
bad things anymore etc.
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Like you've
turned 180 degrees around
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and walking in at
the other direction.
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That's what we
mean by regeneration.
00:11:25.35\00:11:27.85
Because one of the
things that I guess
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that Nicodemus struggle with,
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maybe we all struggle with this,
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is the fact that
religion itself can't save us.
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Having your name on the roll
of a church doesn't save you
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or any religion
doesn't save you.
00:11:43.40\00:11:45.60
It's only repentance and
regeneration that saves us.
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In fact, here in verse 9,
00:11:51.61\00:11:53.91
when Nicodemus is
confronted with this,
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what I would think as an
unforcomfortable truth for him.
00:11:58.15\00:12:01.08
"Nicodemus
answered and said to Him,
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'How can these things be?'"
00:12:02.85\00:12:06.25
In other words,
how is all, listen it.
00:12:06.29\00:12:10.29
In all his doctoral
trainings and all his education,
00:12:10.33\00:12:15.36
this simple truth that
Jesus was outlining to him,
00:12:15.40\00:12:18.90
he had never understood it.
00:12:18.93\00:12:20.34
And that's why he says,
"How can these things be."
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And as I said he
studied with Gamaliel
00:12:23.30\00:12:25.67
and he was up to
the very, very top
00:12:25.71\00:12:28.04
as far as academic
achievements were concerned.
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And, but it was like
the blind leading the blind.
00:12:30.98\00:12:33.25
Yeah.
00:12:33.28\00:12:34.62
Well, Jesus said
to him in verse 7,
00:12:34.65\00:12:36.28
"Do not marvel that I
said, 'You must be born again.'"
00:12:36.32\00:12:40.16
So Jesus is saying,
00:12:40.19\00:12:41.52
"It's not hard
for you to understand,
00:12:41.56\00:12:42.89
you should know this."
00:12:42.92\00:12:44.26
Yes. Well, it's a...
00:12:44.29\00:12:46.46
It was a
confrontational message.
00:12:46.49\00:12:48.26
And because we have
read this thing so often,
00:12:48.30\00:12:52.20
we don't always sense
the confrontational point
00:12:52.23\00:12:56.10
that Nicodemus
was up against here.
00:12:56.14\00:12:59.14
He didn't come for this.
00:12:59.17\00:13:00.51
No, no.
00:13:00.54\00:13:01.88
He wanted to ask
Jesus a few questions.
00:13:01.91\00:13:03.24
Yes, he was wanting to
have an intellectual discussion,
00:13:03.28\00:13:06.31
like he was used to.
00:13:06.35\00:13:07.82
But Jesus wasn't interested
in that type of discussion.
00:13:07.85\00:13:10.65
It's a bit like, I was
running some meetings once
00:13:10.69\00:13:12.85
and a man came down to
the front seat, and I said,
00:13:12.89\00:13:15.86
"Oh are you a Christian?"
00:13:15.89\00:13:17.23
And I think he was very offended
00:13:17.26\00:13:18.99
that I would even
ask that question.
00:13:19.03\00:13:20.90
He said, "Of course, I was.
00:13:20.93\00:13:22.26
I was born here in Australia."
00:13:22.30\00:13:24.13
Yes.
00:13:24.17\00:13:25.50
Meaning that, you know,
00:13:25.53\00:13:27.04
because I'm born here
that makes me a Christian.
00:13:27.07\00:13:30.11
That would be
absurd of saying that
00:13:30.14\00:13:32.61
because I was born in a shed,
00:13:32.64\00:13:36.85
that makes me a car.
00:13:36.88\00:13:39.08
I mean... Or a cow.
00:13:39.11\00:13:41.08
Or a cow, yes.
00:13:41.12\00:13:43.55
It's ridiculous
and yet there are many
00:13:43.59\00:13:45.72
who are being
brought up to believe that
00:13:45.75\00:13:47.12
because my parents were
of such and such religion,
00:13:47.16\00:13:50.23
that makes me religious
and that makes me saved.
00:13:50.26\00:13:53.40
Yeah.
00:13:53.43\00:13:54.76
But Nicodemus needed to
come to an understanding
00:13:54.80\00:13:57.10
that was not true.
00:13:57.13\00:13:58.97
Just because he was a Pharisee
and part of the Sanhedrin,
00:13:59.00\00:14:02.07
didn't mean that he had
a relationship with God.
00:14:02.10\00:14:04.77
Correct, and that's
what he didn't have.
00:14:04.81\00:14:07.48
One of the wonderful
things about the Gospel of John
00:14:07.51\00:14:10.51
is that John actually explains
all about this new birth.
00:14:10.55\00:14:15.85
In probably the closest thing
00:14:15.88\00:14:17.59
that I think
that the Bible gives
00:14:17.62\00:14:19.72
is to a formula of salvation.
00:14:19.75\00:14:23.12
Its back here in the
first Chapter of John
00:14:23.16\00:14:26.49
and verse 11,
00:14:26.53\00:14:29.96
John 1:11, it says,
00:14:30.00\00:14:32.90
"He came to His own,
00:14:32.93\00:14:35.07
and His own did not receive Him.
00:14:35.10\00:14:38.04
But as many as received Him,
00:14:38.07\00:14:41.48
to them He gave the right
to become children of God,
00:14:41.51\00:14:45.38
to those who
believe in His name."
00:14:45.41\00:14:49.95
Now, then what we might
like to refer to as a formula,
00:14:49.98\00:14:54.99
if we could put it down to that.
00:14:55.02\00:14:57.33
Verse 13, where it says,
00:14:57.36\00:14:58.73
"Who were born, not of blood,
00:14:58.76\00:15:04.47
nor of the will of the flesh,"
00:15:04.50\00:15:05.93
that's a second
point, blood is the first.
00:15:05.97\00:15:08.50
Second the will of the
flesh, "Nor of the will of man."
00:15:08.54\00:15:12.01
Now this matter of blood,
00:15:12.04\00:15:14.04
it's saying that Christianity
or a relationship to God
00:15:14.08\00:15:19.38
does not run in our bloodline.
00:15:19.41\00:15:24.55
No matter what my parents were
that may help to influence me,
00:15:24.59\00:15:28.69
but it's not a guarantee
of getting me into heaven.
00:15:28.72\00:15:31.53
No, that's right. Or salvation.
00:15:31.56\00:15:33.83
Because I have to born again
00:15:33.86\00:15:36.56
and that's why John is
emphasizing not of blood.
00:15:36.60\00:15:40.27
You see the Jews
struggled with this,
00:15:40.30\00:15:42.27
because they
felt that if they were
00:15:42.30\00:15:44.04
the sons and
daughters of Abraham
00:15:44.07\00:15:47.18
that guaranteed
them eternal life.
00:15:47.21\00:15:49.68
And Jesus is
pointing at him of that stuff.
00:15:49.71\00:15:51.28
Yeah, they got it
through genealogy.
00:15:51.31\00:15:53.18
Yes, that's right.
00:15:53.21\00:15:55.45
They knew all their fathers
00:15:55.48\00:15:56.82
going right
back for a long time.
00:15:56.85\00:15:59.35
Now, but genealogies
were very important to them.
00:15:59.39\00:16:02.69
And then the second point here
that Jesus is emphasizing is,
00:16:02.72\00:16:08.36
"Nor of the will of the flesh,"
00:16:08.40\00:16:10.37
meaning that salvation
00:16:10.40\00:16:11.80
is got nothing to
do with human desire.
00:16:11.83\00:16:15.37
Because how
often many of us feel
00:16:15.40\00:16:17.44
that if we have a
feeling about things
00:16:17.47\00:16:20.21
and the further that we have
00:16:20.24\00:16:22.54
and those
feelings would drive us.
00:16:22.58\00:16:24.15
That means that I
must be a Christian,
00:16:24.18\00:16:26.78
if I had the right feelings.
00:16:26.82\00:16:30.59
But when you
think about feelings
00:16:30.62\00:16:32.09
and far as Christianity concern,
00:16:32.12\00:16:33.76
I mean there are many people
00:16:33.79\00:16:35.12
who have very hard,
very strong feelings.
00:16:35.16\00:16:37.33
And they kill in
the name of Jesus.
00:16:37.36\00:16:38.79
Yes.
00:16:38.83\00:16:40.16
They blow themselves
up in the name of Jesus.
00:16:40.20\00:16:42.86
So, you can't say that
those people are sincere
00:16:42.90\00:16:45.53
and they have a great fervor,
00:16:45.57\00:16:47.40
but we would think
it's terribly misplaced.
00:16:47.44\00:16:51.21
There's a saying, it says,
00:16:51.24\00:16:53.31
"You can be sincere,
00:16:53.34\00:16:55.38
you can also be
sincerely wrong."
00:16:55.41\00:16:57.58
That's right, yes.
00:16:57.61\00:16:59.11
Then the third point
that John makes here,
00:16:59.15\00:17:01.68
"Nor of the will of man."
00:17:01.72\00:17:05.55
So this new birth
00:17:05.59\00:17:07.79
has nothing to do
with the will of man.
00:17:07.82\00:17:10.13
So it got nothing to
do with our human desires,
00:17:10.16\00:17:14.36
it's got nothing to
do with our human creeds,
00:17:14.40\00:17:17.17
it's got nothing to do
with our human pilgrimages,
00:17:17.20\00:17:20.40
nothing like that at all.
00:17:20.44\00:17:21.77
Nothing to do with
having your name on the book.
00:17:21.80\00:17:23.14
No.
00:17:23.17\00:17:24.51
It's got nothing to
do with of human will.
00:17:24.54\00:17:27.71
That's why John is saying here,
00:17:27.74\00:17:29.81
"Nor the will of
man, but of God."
00:17:29.84\00:17:35.55
And then if we
come back to John 3,
00:17:35.58\00:17:37.99
where Jesus was still
talking here to Nicodemus,
00:17:38.02\00:17:42.59
and Jesus no doubt was teaching
these very points to Nicodemus.
00:17:42.62\00:17:47.20
He then alludes to a
very interesting part
00:17:47.23\00:17:50.30
of Israel's history in verse 14,
00:17:50.33\00:17:53.00
when He says,
00:17:53.03\00:17:54.37
"As Moses lifted up the
serpent in the wilderness,
00:17:54.40\00:17:58.07
even so must the son
of man be lifted up."
00:17:58.11\00:18:02.48
And you will remember,
00:18:02.51\00:18:03.85
I'm sure many of our
listeners will remember
00:18:03.88\00:18:06.15
that the Jews were
complaining, and whining,
00:18:06.18\00:18:10.15
and criticizing poor Moses.
00:18:10.19\00:18:13.72
And even God lost
patience with them
00:18:13.76\00:18:18.16
and allowed some
snakes, the serpents...
00:18:18.19\00:18:20.86
Yes.
00:18:20.90\00:18:22.23
To come out and
these were deadly serpents.
00:18:22.26\00:18:24.97
Like in Australia we
would say that death adders,
00:18:25.00\00:18:27.54
in America they'll
probably have the rattlesnakes.
00:18:27.57\00:18:30.17
And in India, in places
like that they have the cobras,
00:18:30.21\00:18:33.51
I mean they're deadly. Yes.
00:18:33.54\00:18:35.04
And you can't even run
away 'cause they'll chase you.
00:18:35.08\00:18:38.01
Yes, so.
00:18:38.05\00:18:39.98
And 20, the Bible says
00:18:40.02\00:18:42.02
22,000 Jews died, of Israel died
00:18:42.05\00:18:47.06
as a result of the snakes
biting them and, of course,
00:18:47.09\00:18:50.93
there was wailing
and everyone was upset
00:18:50.96\00:18:53.43
because so many
people were dying.
00:18:53.46\00:18:55.90
And they came to Moses again
00:18:55.93\00:18:58.17
and God in His
mercy provided a remedy
00:18:58.20\00:19:02.34
because there
was no human remedy
00:19:02.37\00:19:03.94
for this at all.
00:19:03.97\00:19:05.81
And you remember the story
00:19:05.84\00:19:10.71
how that they
were to place a pole
00:19:10.75\00:19:13.82
in the middle of a
camp, where everybody,
00:19:13.85\00:19:15.78
no matter where they
were in the camp could see it.
00:19:15.82\00:19:18.65
And then they
put a brass serpent
00:19:18.69\00:19:22.02
twined on the pole.
00:19:22.06\00:19:24.56
And we use that
same symbol today
00:19:24.59\00:19:26.43
for the medical protection.
00:19:26.46\00:19:27.80
That's correct, that's
where they get it from.
00:19:27.83\00:19:30.20
You know, much of our
life is entwined in the Bible.
00:19:30.23\00:19:34.04
I mean many people
don't recognize it,
00:19:34.07\00:19:35.70
but that's where it comes from.
00:19:35.74\00:19:38.94
And so they were told
then to look and to live.
00:19:38.97\00:19:44.65
If they looked at
that brass serpent,
00:19:44.68\00:19:46.61
now admittedly, Rosemary,
00:19:46.65\00:19:48.88
you have to say that
00:19:48.92\00:19:50.25
that was the most
ridiculous thing, really.
00:19:50.29\00:19:53.12
How would looking
at a brass serpent
00:19:53.15\00:19:56.06
on a pole help my snakebite?
00:19:56.09\00:20:00.26
Exactly.
00:20:00.30\00:20:01.63
I mean it seems ridiculous.
00:20:01.66\00:20:03.00
There's only one way it works.
00:20:03.03\00:20:06.13
Yes, because it was a
symbol, it was a type,
00:20:06.17\00:20:08.60
it was an illustration
to those people of the fact
00:20:08.64\00:20:11.64
that Jesus Himself was
going to provide the antidote.
00:20:11.67\00:20:14.78
And He was going to
be placed on the cross.
00:20:14.81\00:20:18.31
It was all the
matter of faith. Yes.
00:20:18.35\00:20:20.58
Those who didn't have
faith refused to look.
00:20:20.62\00:20:23.79
But those who
believed what God said
00:20:23.82\00:20:25.99
and knew that
that was only remedy
00:20:26.02\00:20:28.46
to be healed and not die.
00:20:28.49\00:20:30.06
Yes.
00:20:30.09\00:20:31.43
They looked and
they were healed.
00:20:31.46\00:20:33.46
It's amazing how many,
how so many refused to look
00:20:33.50\00:20:37.23
when others were
looked and lived.
00:20:37.27\00:20:39.40
Yeah, that's the perverseness
of human nature, isn't it?
00:20:39.43\00:20:44.04
And the great
illustration and the reason
00:20:44.07\00:20:46.31
why Jesus here is
alluding to the story again
00:20:46.34\00:20:49.31
in talking to Nicodemus.
00:20:49.34\00:20:50.68
Remember this is...
00:20:50.71\00:20:52.05
He's still having a
discussion with Nicodemus
00:20:52.08\00:20:53.58
what He's talking here.
00:20:53.62\00:20:54.95
Yes.
00:20:54.98\00:20:56.32
And He's saying to Nicodemus,
00:20:56.35\00:20:57.69
who would have been
very, very familiar,
00:20:57.72\00:20:59.89
very familiar with
the history of this.
00:20:59.92\00:21:03.22
He knew instantly
as soon as Jesus talked
00:21:03.26\00:21:05.66
about as the serpent
00:21:05.69\00:21:07.10
was lifted up in the wilderness.
00:21:07.13\00:21:08.46
He knew the story.
00:21:08.50\00:21:09.83
He knew the story, absolutely.
00:21:09.86\00:21:11.47
And He now was
bringing the lesson
00:21:11.50\00:21:15.30
that Nicodemus had overlooked
and hadn't understood.
00:21:15.34\00:21:20.04
That it wasn't
just a history lesson
00:21:20.08\00:21:22.54
as to something that
happened way, way back,
00:21:22.58\00:21:24.65
a 1,000 or so years ago.
00:21:24.68\00:21:26.48
But rather this was a
great lesson to teach us
00:21:26.51\00:21:29.58
that Jesus was to be lifted up.
00:21:29.62\00:21:31.69
And the venom of
sin was to be taken away
00:21:31.72\00:21:36.42
by us looking by faith
at what Jesus had done.
00:21:36.46\00:21:41.46
Because I think
it's in Corinthians,
00:21:41.50\00:21:45.27
where it says that Christ
was made to be sinned for us.
00:21:45.30\00:21:51.01
In other words,
00:21:51.04\00:21:52.87
He took upon Himself
our guilt and our sin,
00:21:52.91\00:21:59.81
and if we accept Him,
His life instead of mine,
00:21:59.85\00:22:05.92
then I gain eternal life.
00:22:05.95\00:22:08.12
You see, when it
says here that when,
00:22:08.16\00:22:11.19
as Moses lifted up the
serpent in the wilderness,
00:22:11.23\00:22:13.36
even Son of man be lifted up
that whosoever believes in Him.
00:22:13.40\00:22:18.10
Right.
00:22:18.13\00:22:19.47
And that's pointing
00:22:19.50\00:22:20.94
to the serpent
in the wilderness,
00:22:20.97\00:22:23.20
it was all about faith,
00:22:23.24\00:22:24.57
believe in what God was
giving us as an antidote.
00:22:24.61\00:22:30.48
But when Nicodemus saw
Jesus lifted up on the cross,
00:22:30.51\00:22:34.42
this would have
all come back to him.
00:22:34.45\00:22:37.89
Even so must the Son of
man be lifted up on a cross,
00:22:37.92\00:22:41.86
like that serpent.
00:22:41.89\00:22:43.26
And his faith, he
would have just said,
00:22:43.29\00:22:45.09
"I get it, I understand."
00:22:45.13\00:22:48.90
Because our next
confrontation with Nicodemus
00:22:48.93\00:22:52.83
is probably at the cross.
00:22:52.87\00:22:54.24
Now, I recognize that the
Bible doesn't actually tell us
00:22:54.27\00:22:58.47
that Nicodemus was at the cross,
00:22:58.51\00:23:00.08
but you cannot have that
event take place in Jerusalem
00:23:00.11\00:23:04.88
as it did without
Nicodemus being aware of it.
00:23:04.91\00:23:07.48
Well, Nicodemus was there
00:23:07.52\00:23:09.88
and he bought
expensive spices and alloys
00:23:09.92\00:23:15.42
to anoint Jesus body
with Joseph of Arimathea,
00:23:15.46\00:23:19.16
so that's in John Chapter 19.
00:23:19.19\00:23:22.26
So obviously he must
have been there at the cross
00:23:22.30\00:23:25.67
and seen this and
helped to take Jesus body down
00:23:25.70\00:23:29.04
and anoint His body for burial.
00:23:29.07\00:23:30.91
Well, I think for the
first time in his mind,
00:23:30.94\00:23:33.84
he really now understood
what the Sanhedrin was up to.
00:23:33.88\00:23:39.78
He realize what they are about,
00:23:39.81\00:23:41.78
because when he went
to Joseph of Arimathea,
00:23:41.82\00:23:45.72
he had heard that the plan was
00:23:45.75\00:23:49.19
that the Jews were going
to through the body of Jesus
00:23:49.22\00:23:52.13
on the Gehenna,
the heap of the...
00:23:52.16\00:23:55.83
The rubbish tip of Gehenna.
00:23:55.86\00:23:58.47
And so he went to
Joseph of Arimathea and said,
00:23:58.50\00:24:00.84
"Joseph, what can we do?"
00:24:00.87\00:24:02.80
And Joseph said,
00:24:02.84\00:24:04.17
"Well, I've got a beautiful tomb
00:24:04.21\00:24:05.54
and I'm gonna give that to Him."
00:24:05.57\00:24:06.94
And Nicodemus said,
00:24:06.98\00:24:08.34
"Well, I've got all
these beautiful spices.
00:24:08.38\00:24:10.51
And..." Expensive.
00:24:10.55\00:24:12.05
A very expensive,
00:24:12.08\00:24:13.42
"and I'm going to
anoint the body of Jesus."
00:24:13.45\00:24:15.28
And so it was the cross really
00:24:15.32\00:24:18.55
that finally helped Nicodemus
00:24:18.59\00:24:22.89
to fully understand
what Christ came to do.
00:24:22.92\00:24:26.33
That's right.
00:24:26.36\00:24:27.70
And that's why
from this point onwards
00:24:27.73\00:24:29.26
he became one of
His most loyal servants.
00:24:29.30\00:24:33.87
In fact, tradition tells us too,
00:24:33.90\00:24:35.90
Rosemary, that
Nicodemus became very poor
00:24:35.94\00:24:40.54
and his daughter, we're told
00:24:40.58\00:24:43.24
was actually
talking barley seeds
00:24:43.28\00:24:46.58
from the hooves
of horses to eat.
00:24:46.61\00:24:49.25
That's how poor they became.
00:24:49.28\00:24:51.02
So he gave
everything... Everything.
00:24:51.05\00:24:53.29
To the cause of Christ,
00:24:53.32\00:24:55.16
and it was men like Joseph
of Arimathea and Nicodemus
00:24:55.19\00:25:00.16
who helped to with
their wealth and so forth
00:25:00.20\00:25:02.60
was propelled
the message of God.
00:25:02.63\00:25:04.80
And God uses men,
that's why riches,
00:25:04.83\00:25:08.14
nothing wrong with riches but...
00:25:08.17\00:25:10.14
How do we use them?
00:25:10.17\00:25:11.51
It's the way we use.
00:25:11.54\00:25:12.87
And that's why I just
love that hymn, you know,
00:25:12.91\00:25:16.78
well, that verse
that Isaac Watts,
00:25:16.81\00:25:19.91
the great hymn
writer wrote when he said,
00:25:19.95\00:25:25.65
"When I survey
the wondrous cross
00:25:25.69\00:25:30.59
on which the
Prince of glory died,
00:25:30.63\00:25:35.56
my richest gain
I count but loss,
00:25:35.60\00:25:41.34
and pour
contempt on all my pride."
00:25:41.37\00:25:47.38
And then the
other verse he writes,"
00:25:47.41\00:25:49.44
Were the whole
realm of nature mine,
00:25:49.48\00:25:53.48
that were a
present far too small,
00:25:53.52\00:25:57.29
love so amazing, so divine,
00:25:57.32\00:26:02.69
demands my soul,
my life, my all."
00:26:02.72\00:26:09.66
What a wonderful hymn
that is, that man Isaac Watts
00:26:09.70\00:26:13.47
encapsulated the
very truth of the gospel
00:26:13.50\00:26:17.27
and the love
that Christ has for us
00:26:17.31\00:26:20.04
in giving us the
opportunity of eternal life
00:26:20.08\00:26:22.91
that Christ took my place.
00:26:22.94\00:26:25.98
And as I look to him
today and as I confess my sins
00:26:26.01\00:26:30.92
and I'm born again.
00:26:30.95\00:26:32.69
And I have forgiveness of sin
00:26:32.72\00:26:34.26
and then on top of
forgiveness of sin,
00:26:34.29\00:26:36.86
God wants to change my life.
00:26:36.89\00:26:39.56
So that I want to do
that which God wants me to do.
00:26:39.59\00:26:43.80
And that's where he demands
our soul, our life out, all.
00:26:43.83\00:26:48.04
Nicodemus gave everything
in the long run for Jesus.
00:26:48.07\00:26:51.24
Yes.
00:26:51.27\00:26:52.61
Because he came to see
Him lifted up on that cross
00:26:52.64\00:26:55.04
and believed that He
was who He said He was.
00:26:55.08\00:26:58.31
Yes.
00:26:58.35\00:26:59.68
And as we read the Word of God
00:26:59.71\00:27:01.05
and especially as we
read about Jesus on the cross
00:27:01.08\00:27:04.59
and His death
and His resurrection,
00:27:04.62\00:27:07.19
we also can come to believe.
00:27:07.22\00:27:09.19
Yes.
00:27:09.22\00:27:10.56
Well I would like to encourage
all our listeners today,
00:27:10.59\00:27:13.60
Rosemary, to offer a
silent prayer to God,
00:27:13.63\00:27:17.97
to thank Him again
for the cross of Christ.
00:27:18.00\00:27:21.80
Because without the
cross we are hopeless,
00:27:21.84\00:27:27.01
and as He said to
Nicodemus as Christ,
00:27:27.04\00:27:29.64
as Moses lifted up a serpent,
so he was to be lifted up.
00:27:29.68\00:27:33.28
That's right.
00:27:33.31\00:27:34.65
And the challenge for us
is that we do this every day.
00:27:34.68\00:27:38.82
Our take home message is,
00:27:38.85\00:27:40.96
"You must be born
again," Jesus said.
00:27:40.99\00:27:43.63
And read the Bible,
find out who Jesus is
00:27:43.66\00:27:47.40
and let Him come into your heart
00:27:47.43\00:27:49.93
so that He can remake you.
00:27:49.96\00:27:51.80
Thank you for joining us
and we will see you next time.
00:27:51.83\00:27:54.34